Hot shooting leads FSU to first ACC road win

Florida State guard Trent Forrest (3) drives past Miami players during the second half of a basketball game at the Watsco Center in Coral Gables, FL, on Sunday, January 27, 2018.(Photo: Daniel A. Varela/FSView)

It took 358 days but the Florida State men’s basketball team finally picked up an ACC road victory with a 78-66 win at Miami on Sunday night. Sophomore guard MJ Walker paced the Seminoles (15-5 overall, 3-4 ACC) potent offensive attack, finishing 6-for-7 from beyond the arc with 22 points.

Entering the game averaging 5.6 points per game in ACC games, the former five-star prospect and McDonald's All-American tallied his highest scoring output of the season. His three-point performance told much of the story for how FSU head coach Leonard Hamilton’s squad picked up a season sweep of the team he coached from 1990-2000, as 12-for-20 shooting from long distance proved the difference.

Another solid performance from redshirt-sophomore forward, Mfiondu Kabengele, who entered the game leading the team in scoring with 12.8 ppg in an average of 18.9 minutes, scored 17 points on 6-9 shooting. His post presence down the stretch proved beneficial for FSU, whose starting center, Christ Koumadje, played 11 minutes and was ejected from the contest with 03:31 remaining due to a flagrant 2 foul stemming from a thrown elbow. Kabengele’s consistent form on both sides of the ball helped the Seminoles limit Miami to 18 total rebounds, compared to FSU’s 28.

Walker and Kabengele’s performances on the ball may have also overshadowed the all-around contributions of senior guard, Terance Mann, who finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. The double-double, his third as a Seminole, helped the ’Noles space the floor and create offensive opportunities that were in a large part, limited, during their 1-4 start to ACC play.

During that five-game stretch, FSU failed to shoot better than 42.2 percent from the field and 32.0 percent from beyond the arc. In their two contests since, both wins vs. rivals in Miami and Clemson on Tuesday, the Seminoles have shot 50.5 percent from the field and 52.4 percent from three. The blueprint for the road back toward the top of the ACC standings and the AP Top 25 has been laid out for this veteran group and it is simple: shoot well enough to have a chance late in a contest.

Head coach Leonard Hamilton and his Florida State squad picked up their first ACC road win of the season on Sunday night.(Photo: Daniel Varela/FSView)

The ACC slate so far for FSU has shown the unmatched depth in a conference that last year sent nine teams to the NCAA Tournament. For the Seminoles to equal or improve upon an Elite Eight performance from a year, picking up victories on the road vs. struggling opponents may prove the difference in the draw they receive should they return to the March Madness stage.

Next up for Florida State is a home matchup with Georgia Tech on Saturday afternoon. The Seminoles have gone 15-11 against the Yellow Jackets during Hamilton’s 17-year tenure. With a win over GT, FSU will move to .500 in the ACC for the first time this year.